


The Warmth In Those Blue Eyes

by Aigyptiane



Category: Fate/EXTELLA LINK - Fandom, Fate/EXTRA
Genre: Canon Compliant, Fate/Extella Link spoilers, GUYS THE CHARLIE/ASTOLFO IS PLATONIC I SWEAR, Gen, Major character death - Freeform, can u even call this canon compliant, i wish we had more fanfics of this guy i miss my boyfriend, or like dad friend charlie, theyre like dumb bitch friends, well yeah maybe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-22
Updated: 2019-09-22
Packaged: 2020-10-25 22:30:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20731730
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aigyptiane/pseuds/Aigyptiane
Summary: It's been centuries since Astolfo's seen the certain warmth in blue eyes.





	The Warmth In Those Blue Eyes

**Author's Note:**

> EXTELLA LINK SPOILERS, you've been warned!!
> 
> my first fate franchise fanfic!! I just kind of wanted to make an alternate universe extella link where the only thing that changes is that astolfo was there to witness the last battle against karl. It's kind of a wasted opportunity that Astolfo wasn't there yknow? There could've been a huge angst factor bc I really want to see how Astolfo would react to seeing Charlie d-word
> 
> my twitter is @aigyptiane is u want more paladin stands content!!! im charlemagne stan 24/7

“You Heroic-Shit-for-Brains!”

There’s something so familiar about the voice. Astolfo snaps out of their trance for a second to turn swiftly. The figure yells at Astolfo, and they can’t process the words properly, but they hear it, “What the fuck are you doing?!”

Astolfo blinks again, and the mist clouding their mind dissipates just for a moment for them to see clearly. The figure is coming closer- it’s running closer, close enough for Astolfo to finally recognize a few key features: black hair streaked with white and a matching black and white tunic, and warm, blue eyes. Astolfo remembers those eyes. The boy comes closer still, but then he stops to catch his breath, and he yells loud enough for Astolfo to hear loud and clear, “It’s me, Charlemagne! I’ve come to knock some sense into you, idiot!”

…Charlemagne?

It’s as if everything clicks together, and the trance Astolfo is under fades away. Astolfo stumbles back in shock to see his highness so… small and young, and so full of life in his blue eyes. Astolfo gasps, “My King?!”

_Take him with you. Don’t let him slip out of your hands again._

There is a voice whispering to Astolfo, and the certain fog in Astolfo’s head comes back, clouding their reasoning. They laugh in a giddy manner, yet there isn’t anything to laugh at. Charlemagne looks absolutely distraught and it looks like he’s already figured out that his paladin is turned against him.

Astolfo likes this high, this feeling of power rushing through them, they like the stares the human and their two other servants give. Astolfo doesn’t have a grasp of what they’re doing anymore. They hold out their hand, “Come with me, My King! That way, we’ll always be together! Wouldn’t that make you happy?”

Charlemagne huffs stubbornly, “Of course, of all the things he can do, it’s turn you against me.”

“It’s not that bad!” Astolfo promises, “Isn’t world peace what you want? He’s already doing all the work, so if you just join me, then things will be easier! You don’t have to do anything anymore! We can stay together!”

“Well, this definitely isn’t how I want this world peace thing going down!” Charlemagne isn’t listening. Astolfo pouts at that, and the prince continues, “So I’m just gonna knock some sense back into you, then give you an earful! Get ready!”

“Ughh, fine! I’ll have to do this myself, then!” Astolfo puffs their cheeks and whines like a little child. They raise their lance against the boy, and they charge at each other.

* * *

“My King.”

Charlemagne turns to greet the pink paladin, but it doesn’t look like they’re having any of that. Astolfo gets straight to the point, “You’ve been avoiding me.”

The boy’s shoulders slump and he breathes out a sigh with a sad, regretful smile on his face. His hand reaches up to pat Astolfo on the head like he’s always done before, “I’m sorry.”

“Are you sure about what you want to do?” Astolfo fears the answer. They’ve known Charlemagne for years; he isn’t the type to back out once he has a goal. Astolfo knows he’s going to say yes, but they don’t want to hear it. They pray to God that’s not what they hear.

“Of course I am.”

“Why? If you kill him – you – you know what’s going to happen!” Astolfo raises their voice, furious about how willing Charlemagne is to save this digital world at the cost of his own life. It’s something they hate about him.

There is a glint of sadness in those blue eyes, because he doesn’t what to go just yet. It’s his duty, though, it’s what he’s here for. Charlemagne sighs, “I’m already prepared for that.” To be very honest, he isn’t, but he has to look strong for them. “That’s why I’m here.”

Astolfo engulfs him in a hug and the tears come rolling down. They hold Charlemagne close, so close, so tightly, because they’re scared that he’ll go away an hour later, or tomorrow. They aren’t prepared to lose him again. Astolfo protests, “I don’t want you to leave!”

The tears don’t stop, everything comes crashing down like a flood as Charlemagne wraps his arms around the smaller paladin, burying his face in their hair to reassure them that he’s still here. Charlemagne whispers, “I know.”

“I don’t want you to go!”

“I know.”

* * *

  
“Hey, Master,” Astolfo speaks in a hushed tone. Hakuno looks to them, and they continue, “I have a favor to ask of you.”

Hakuno raises an eyebrow. It puts a little smile on Astolfo’s face now riddled with tremendous amounts of worry. “Please, look out for Charlie. It’s just…” Astolfo sucks in a breath before continuing, “…he always forgets to look out for himself. He trusts you, Master, so I trust you, too.”

Hakuno’s eyebrows are furrowed, but they don’t ask any questions. It must be an important duty, so Hakuno nods. Astolfo is thankful.

They know this favor is useless. There is no way to restore a breaking Spirit Core, and the longer Astolfo thinks about it, the more their chest weighs. There is no fixing Charlemagne. In a matter of weeks, maybe even days, he’s going to fade away again, and Astolfo will never get another chance to see him smile another day.

They push past Karl’s forces, the cannons, the moving contraptions, and the facsimiles coming out in waves. Now they stand in front of the menacing castle, adorned with quartz and gold, and it’s so tall that Astolfo can’t see where its height ends. The entire vicinity is surrounded by a sinister cloud of purple, and it’s eerily silent. It’s too silent for Astolfo’s taste.

“We’re here,” Nero marvels at the architecture. She walks to the double doors and takes a few seconds to admire its craftsmanship, and she places her hands on the doors to push them open. The doors give way, opening slowly with a loud creak. A gust of cold wind follows, and it chills Astolfo.

They push forth, climbing up the plentiful stairs, a lush red carpet laid out on it. Nero sighs as they ascend up the stairs, every step bringing them closer to the throne room, “So this is where it ends.”

Hakuno nods in response. Astolfo is silent all throughout the walk, and Charlemagne glances at them worriedly. Tamamo asks in her usual motherly concern, “Are you alright, Mr. Charlie?”

“Of course I am!” Charlemagne beams at Tamamo. Astolfo looks away, they know it’s a lie. There’s a bitter taste in their mouth. Astolfo stays silent.

The rest of the ascend is in comfortable (not for Astolfo) silence. There’s another set of double doors blocking the way. Charlemagne pushes them open, and at the end of the hall is Karl seated on his throne, behind him a replica of the castle, much smaller. Charlemagne steps forward just as Karl gets up from his throne, and he declares across the hall, “We end this here, Karl!”

Astolfo doesn’t want to hear those words, but they do. It’s painful.

* * *

  
Karl’s contraption falls into shambles, its mana core emitting huge waves of power. It explodes, and it blows them all away. Karl however, walks out of the explosion, unharmed, but evidently pissed his contraption’s been bested again. There’s a painful ringing in Astolfo’s ears, but as soon as the smoke dissipates, the only people left standing are Karl and Charlemagne. Astolfo’s heart is pounding. The end is near and Astolfo already knows of the result.

Their blades clash in a show of lights, white against the colorful array of hues Joyeuse changes to. Astolfo is tense, they’re holding their breath. They’re still conscious so they get up, but they stumble right after, already low on mana from how much they’ve used tearing apart Karl’s vessel. Astolfo doesn’t want to be useless. Astolfo wants one more battle with Charlie by their side, but they can’t even move a limb anymore. The little amount of mana they have left is what keeps them here.

Astolfo looks around to find Nero and Tamamo, but the two are in the same shape as they are, dry of mana and barely getting by. Hakuno doesn’t look so good, either. They were farthest from the impact, yet they’re only human, so it’s mere luck that Hakuno managed to survive until now. Astolfo’s scared that Hakuno’s supply won’t hold on long enough for Charlie to keep going.

Astolfo goes back to the fight, holding Argalia tight in their hand, breath trapped as they watch the flash of lights and the cyclone of attacks. It’s dangerously fast-paced; a swing, a parry, Charlemagne steps back to send a shockwave of ice coming Karl’s way, and Karl manages to shatter it before it reaches him. They’re on even ground, but Charlemagne’s swings are getting threateningly slow, and Astolfo’s heart is racing.

Hakuno raises their arm, and with a bright flash of red, one Command Seal is used. Hakuno shouts, “Finish this!”

It’s as if a large surge of power enters Charlemagne, and he leaps back from Karl’s heavy strike. Charlemagne raises his sword and everything seems to slow as rays of colorful light rush into his blade, making it glow bright. Astolfo watches, mesmerized by the beauty of it all, as a pair of blue wings emerge from Charlemagne. He jumps up and 12 javelins accompany him in an arc, gathering light. Each one has a different color, Astolfo notices, and they recognize those colors. Each javelin represents one paladin, and Astolfo notices that the pink javelin is the closest to Charlemagne.

Astolfo doesn’t catch the chant, but they do hear its True Name. At the command of his sword, the javelins release the rays of light, smaller compared to Charlemagne’s own beam of light from his blade. There’s no blind spot for Karl to survive, but it doesn’t relieve Astolfo at all, because they know Charlemagne isn’t surviving this either.

There’s another explosion of colorful lights, and Astolfo shies away from the brightness. The piercing sound of silence is back and it annoys Astolfo to no end, but they have no time to think about that. Once the light fades away, Charlemagne falls to the ground with a thud that makes Astolfo’s heart race and body move on its own.

Karl is still intact however. That’s what makes Astolfo worry; Charlemagne no longer has the energy to keep going, and Karl can use this as the chance to get rid of him, and then all of Charlemagne’s efforts will go to waste. Astolfo screams his name, begging for him to wake up. They run as fast as they can and they gather the boy in their arms, tears running down their eyes as they hold the lifeless body of their king.

“Charlie? Charlie?! You idiot! Wake up!” Astolfo yells at him and shakes him, as if that will bring him back. They don’t know why they’re still trying even if they’ve accepted that in the end, Charlemagne isn’t going to survive. They still have to try, though, Astolfo whispers. Charlie wouldn’t want them to give up so easily, after all.

In this time of vulnerability, Karl doesn’t take the chance to strike at them. Instead, he walks back to his throne slowly, and he has trouble sitting back down on it but he manages to, anyway. The sinister mist blocking the sun fades away, and sunlight seeps in through the tall windows adorning the walls. It’s a beautiful sight of tragedy.

Charlemagne’s eyes open weakly, and Astolfo lets go of a breath they didn’t know they’ve been holding. Astolfo doesn’t even give him the time to breathe. They engulf him in a crushing hug, and Charlie makes a choking noise but Astolfo refuses to let go.

Karl says in a raspy voice, struggling to breathe, “You already know what’s going to happen to you, and yet…”

“You truly are stupid.”

Charlemagne chuckles weakly, “I know that.”

“I only wanted to save the world and Altera…” Karl coughs harshly. He knows he’s on the brink of fading.

“Altera doesn’t need saving. She’s already been saved.”

In the instant he says that, Hakuno walks over to Charlemagne’s side. They look… lost, as if not knowing whether they should be scared or not. Karl scrutinizes them for a moment, then he closes his eyes, a content smile on his face, “I see…”

Karl relaxes in his seat, and he fades into gold, blown away by the wind. Charlemagne smiles in content despite the pain he’s under, and Astolfo doesn’t like that smile on his face. The boy reaches up to wipe a tear away from the paladin’s face and he says, “Take care of everyone here for me, will you?”

Astolfo doesn’t reply, their voice is strained from screaming at Charlie and crying. They can’t choke out a word no matter how much they want to. Charlemagne chuckles at that and he continues, “Promise me you won’t forget me. I won’t be summoned like this again. I’ll be more like Karl, I guess.”

Astolfo doesn’t want that.

“C’mon, ‘Stolfo, you’re stronger than this.”

Astolfo whispers, “I don’t want to lose you. Not again.”

“You won’t lose me if you remember me. I’ll always be somewhere in your mind, alright? So stop being a baby and give me a proper farewell!”

Astolfo doesn’t like the word farewell, but if it’s the king’s wish, they’ll follow through. They raise their head from Charlemagne’s chest to look him in the eye, and he looks paler than ever. Astolfo raises their hand to wave weakly, but the boy takes a hold of it and holds it as if his life depends on it, the visages of youth no longer evident in his touch.

“I haven’t been here for long, but I’ve had a blast being here. It’s kinda sad I have to say goodbye so soon, but I know I’ll see you soon, Astolfo, Master.”

Those words are like pins to Astolfo’s heart. The grip on their hand disappears and Astolfo watches in horror as he fades into gold slowly. Charlemagne chuckles weakly and with a smile he says farewell before disappearing into nothing.

It feels too fast for Astolfo – a second ago there was weight on their arms, but now it’s empty. The ground rumbles and the pillars of the castle shake as they fall apart. Nero walks over to them, followed by Tamamo, and she puts a hand on Hakuno’s shoulder. Hakuno turns to Astolfo, and there’s pity and grief in their eyes. Hakuno holds out their hand for Astolfo to hold, and Nero sighs, watching the last rays of sun get obstructed by the falling debris, “Let’s go home.”


End file.
